Sarah Abigail Hall (1845 - 1928)

Refresh this page to see various historical events that occurred during Sarah's lifetime.

In 1845, in the year that Sarah Abigail Hall was born, on March 4th, James K. Polk was inaugurated as the 11th President of the United States. Polk, from Tennessee, beat Henry Clay of Kentucky, 49.5% to 48.1%. Polk served one term.

In 1858, by the time she was only 13 years old, on May 11th, Minnesota became the 32nd U.S. state. It was previously the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory.

In 1886, by the time she was 41 years old, on October 28th, President Grover Cleveland officially dedicated the Statue of Liberty. A gift from France, the base for the statue had been built using donations from the American public. The unplanned but enthusiastic celebration after the dedication led to the first ticker tape parade.

In 1898, at the age of 53 years old, Sarah was alive when on February 15th, the USS Maine exploded and sank in Havana harbor. The reason for the explosion has never been found, but it killed 266 men. "Remember the Maine" became a rallying cry and precipitated the United States' declaration of war on Spain two months later - the beginning of the Spanish-American War. On December 10th, the war ended with the signing of the Treaty of Paris. The Treaty gave the U.S. Puerto Rico, the Philippines, Guam - for $20 million - and, temporarily, Cuba.

In 1928, in the year of Sarah Abigail Hall's passing, Mickie Mouse was born! He first appeared in Disney's Steamboat Willie, along with Minnie. Although they were in two previous shorts, this was the first to be distributed. Steamboat Willie took advantage of the new technology and was a "talkie" - music was coordinated with the animation. It became the most popular cartoon of its day.